by Ben Ayuko
{image by AFP}
Spain were finally crowned champions at the European Championships 2024 to put a thoroughly deserved seal on the otherwise perfect tournament they had. England really did put up a fight, but Harry Kane and co. will have to fight another day to win a continental trophy.
It was a very tentative first half as neither team looked to give anything away very early on. Both teams were tiptoeing around the occasion, almost as if trying not to be noticed by the other until later in the game. England’s tactic of hitting the opposition on the counterattack was working a treat as they opted to let Spain have the ball and pounced on any mistake they made. Spain, however, showed their resolute defense and were not so easily penetrated. 0-0 at the break in an enticing deadlock of a game.
Whatever team talk La Roja were given at halftime probably sounded like the Sermon on the Mount because Spain came out flying at England. They more or less caught the 3 Lions by surprise by immediately upping the tempo from the first half and could have easily scored 2 goals in the opening 5 minutes of the second half. Alas, they had to settle for just the one. Neat interplay between Dani Carvajal and youngster, Lamine Yamal allowed the latter to drive into the box and set up Nico Williams on the far side of the penalty box. Williams, one of the players of the tournament, sent a low drive shot off his left foot, past Jordan Pickford, and into the England net to give Spain the lead just 2min after the break.
Spain then proceeded to lay siege to England goalmouth. It was such a dramatic shift from the more tactical approach in the first half. This was all guns blazing and the spectators were loving every minute of it. This shift in tone prompted Gareth Southgate to make 2 changes. First taking off Captain Harry Kane, and second introducing Chelsea’s star boy, Cole Palmer.
Southgate’s long-standing tradition of having substitutes who make a difference once again paid dividends as Palmer ran onto a setup by Jude Bellingham and, rather gently, place the ball in the bottom corner of the Spanish net. Unai Simone stretched as much as he could to try to save it, but to no avail. With 73minutes of the clock, the score was now 1-1.
It looked as though this thrilling game was destined for extra time. That was, for sure, what every neutral fan wanted given. It was therefore a little melancholic to see Spain take back the lead with mere minutes to spare in the game. 4 minutes in fact. This is because Spanish substitute Mikel Oyarzabal latched onto a low cross into the box by Marc Cucurella and converted it into the England net from close range, breaking England hearts.
Without enough time to mount a riposte, 2-1 is how the game ended with La Roja lifting the coveted trophy yet again.